Mr Whiskers
by Blacksheep7
Summary: When the Order discovers a possible plot to attack Hermione Granger over the summer before her seventh year drastic measures must be taken to ensure her safety. Especially since she no longer has anything to do with the war or her former friends. [HHr]
1. Where it all Began

Mr. Whiskers - Chapter One  
_Where it all Began_

Hermione looked around the Headmasters office in anticipation. When her head-of-house approached her at the leaving feast with a note from Dumbledore she couldn't think of any reason the Headmaster would want to speak with her. It had been almost 8 months since she was involved in anything that would require a visit to his office. So it had to be about next year, maybe they wanted her to be the Head Girl! Traditionally, the Prefect and Headship invitations would come with their annual letters in mid-July, but Hermione couldn't think of any other reason for her to be singled out.

While she waited for the Professor, Hermione took note of the changes in furnishings that had occurred since she was here over a year ago. A few of the Headmasters alchemy devices were missing and a second desk had been added. Her first thoughts when she spotted the Quidditch memorabilia in the small workspace were that Professor McGonagall had moved her office up here to better assist the Headmaster, but quickly abandoned that idea as she realized the books laying about the workspace dealt primarily with Divination and the Dark Arts. The mystery identity of the Headmaster's new roommate really sparked her interest when she noticed a sword hanging behind the new desk.

"Ah, Ms. Grainger. I hope I did not keep you waiting too long," The wizened voice of Professor Dumbledore startled Hermione as he entered the office. "I'm sure you have much more pressing engagements than to entertain an old man on your last evening in the castle, Farewells to be given and belongings to be packed. I believe our esteemed librarian mentioned a tomb or two still out under your name."

"I had planned on returning them before leaving tomorrow, Sir. I can go get them now if you wish."

Albus quickly motioned for her to take a seat. "I'm sure Madam Pince can wait until the morning." She could hear the humor in his voice, something that many of the students had remarked was in short supply as of late. "Butterscotch Disk?"

Hermione tried to keep the surprise out of her voice, "No thank you, Sir."

"Yes, I do seam to get significantly fewer takers, but I haven't been able to look at my lemon drops the same since I received that Christmas gift from the Misters Weasley."

"I believe the twins have dubbed them 'Power Puckers'," Hermione momentarily forgot her unease as she joked with the Headmaster, but upon realizing where she was she quickly turned her sight to the floor, a reaction that was not lost on Albus.

"It has been a while since you have visited my office, Ms. Granger. I believe your only previous occasion was the night Arthur was attacked last winter."

The abrupt change in conversation unnerved the young witch. This wasn't sounding like a congratulation speech. "Well, um... with how things have ended up... um,..."

"There is no need to worry my dear, I understand the reasoning for your actions last summer. Mr. Potter and myself have had several occasions to discuss everything over the past year. Actually, I was hoping to speak with you about some of your more recent decisions."

"More recent decisions? You mean about Ron and-"

"Please Ms. Granger, the staff and I do not involve ourselves with the personal lives of our students. I was merely inquiring if you had given any thought to your holiday plans."

"Oh... Well, the Burrow is obviously out, and I don't think I would be welcome at Grimmauld Place-"

"Let me assure you Ms. Granger, Mr. Potter harbors you no ill will. But as he will not be summering there himself, I would dare say that you would find the comings and goings of our friends disturbing to your studies"

"Oh, I just figured with the Dursleys gone now... never mind. My parents were hoping to spend the entire summer together, and I thought it would be ideal to get started on my NEWT studies."

"That sounds like an informed decision, Ms. Granger," the sparkle in Dumbledore's eye was working overtime now. "Are you enjoying your NEWT classes? I hear you are one of the few to attend Hangrid's magical creatures lessons at this level."

"Oh, yes, this years magical creatures classes were quite educational. Then again, the most dangerous creature we studied was a Nogtail. I'm not sure next year will be quite so smooth, he had mentioned the possibility Chimeras and Nundu during the final exam." Hermione was quite glad to move the conversation away from her summer plans.

"Ahhh... let me assure you there will be no Chimeras allowed on Hogwarts grounds. But exactly what have you heard about Nundu?"

"Not much really," the direction their conversation had taken was beginning to confuse Hermione. "There was mention of Nundu in our third-year text, but no detail. Just that they were a large form of feline from Africa with toxic breath and resistance to spells."

"Very good Ms. Granger, you've just summed up almost everything ever written about the Nundu. But what would you think if I were to tell you it was all based upon ancient tribal legends and the sighting of a single specimen?" The incredulous look on Hermione's face was all the response Albus needed.

"There had been legends in tribal villages for years about a 'ghost cat' that attacked little children. The ministry sent an investigator to look into the stories, one Robert Edgecombe." Here Albus paused until he saw understanding on Hermione's face.

"Yes, as in Marietta Edgecombe. He was her grandfather, actually. He spent several months searching for the Nundu, and by the time he found one sleeping on a sun-warmed rock in the summer of 1914, he was not in the most pleasant of moods. Robert was never one of the most patent of men, aggravated that he had been forced into less than comfortable living conditions for the entire hunt, Robert took his aggression out by throwing a stunner at the sleeping animal. Unfortunately the fur coat of a Nundu is quite spell resistant, and the awakened beast released a cloud of orange vapor from its mouth that quickly killed Mr. Edgecombe."

"You mean he invested that much time searching for one and attacked it on sight?" Hermione could see where Marietta inherited her values.

"Yes, and unfortunately the Ministry's response was just as foolish. Alarmed by the strength of the toxins that had killed Mr. Edgecombe, they send a hunting party of over 50 aurors to capture or destroy the Nundu. It took a combined effort of 26 incendios to fell the animal, and 17 aurors were killed by poorly aimed spells during the final attack. In an effort to cover up the deaths of 18 ministry workers by a single animal, the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures released a statement classifying the Nundu as a dangerous creature, warning everyone to avoid them at all costs. And that was the first, last, and only time a living Nundu has been recorded."

Later, she would never be able to decide if it was the lateness of the hour, the stress of knowing how much packing she still had to do that night, or the fact that their discussion had roamed from truant library books to failed relationships to a ministry worker that had been dead for over 80 years, but Hermione's patience was wearing thin.

"I'm sorry sir, but I really do not see what this has to do with me."

"Ahh, but it has everything to do with you, Ms. Granger. You see, almost everything the ministry has recorded about the Nundu is incorrect, and I would like your help in documenting this." Professor Dumbledore walked over to the second desk and retrieved a large scroll from one of the lower drawers, quietly handing it to the stunned woman before him.

"My absent assistant and I have spent the past several months with a live Nundu here in Hogwarts. The scroll contains a detailed report on what we have observed, but due to the lateness of the hour a short summary should suffice for now. The Nundu is a magical relative of the leopard, but slightly larger with a black, glossy coat. Contrary to the ministry reports, Nundu do not breath acid. The one Mr. Edgecombe came across had recently consumed a streeler, the acidic cloud that killed Mr. Edgecombe was a vaporous form of the streeler's venom. So far the only magic we have documented in the Nundu, other than his natural resistance to magic, is the ability to change the color and patterns of his coat, much like a disillusionment charm."

Hermione pondered this new information for a moment. "So, if they have the ability to hide, and the intelligence to avoid nearly all human contact for hundreds of years, why is one here now? I mean, how did you gain its trust?"

Hermione was surprised by the painful expression her question brought. "Yes dear, the question as to why he trusts me is much more poignant than you could ever know." The headmaster was lost in thought for a few moments before responding. "The fact is that I have gained his trust over the past year, whether that trust is deserved or not, and he has consented to my plans for this summer."

"What do you mean 'consented'? Surely you are not suggesting it can communicate"

"But he can Ms. Granger, and luckily for us he can." The sparkle in her Headmaster's eye suddenly reminded her of the look Ron used to get whenever he defeated Harry at chess. "It will make his stay at your home much easier for everyone involved."

"WHAT?" Hermione jumped to her feet so forcefully the chair toppled behind her. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'MY HOME'? I LIVE IN A MUGGLE NEIGHBORHOOD, I CAN'T BE HARBORING A LEVEL 5 DANGEROUS CREATURE IN MUGGLE LONDON!"

Dumbledore was unruffled at her outburst. "But that is exactly why I have chosen you for this task. I have already spoken with your parents and they have agreed to everything." With a wave of his wand a steaming cup of tea appeared on the desk. "Please, sit down and have a drink while I explain everything."

"You see Hermione, our Groundskeeper will be leaving on a trip for me at the beginning of August and will not be able to take care of our young visitor. Due to the 80 years of horror stories perpetuated by the ministry against Nundus, it would be unwise for me to bring our feline friend on my travels through wizarding areas. That is where you and your family come in. Living far from any other magical persons, we will not have to worry about the panic a Nundu spotting would create. Besides, there is no others I would trust to handle the situation."

"Remus and Tonks will be spending several weeks in July at your home placing wards to prevent any muggles from noticing our adventuresome guest. I hope their presence will not cause any undue strain as I have already cleared their visit with your parents. Hangrid will stop off with our guest and any provisions he may need on the afternoon of July 31st."

"I guess I don't really have much say in this arrangement?" The guilty look on the Headmasters face was enough of an answer. "If that is all, I have some packing to finish," and with that she stormed out of his office.

No sooner did the young witch leave that a shimmer in the air rippled outward to reveal an adolescent Nundu crouched beneath the assistant's desk. As it crawled out from under the desk it disappeared again with a soft pop, only to be replaced by a young man with an unruly mop of black hair.

"Would now be a good time to tell you again that I do not like this idea of yours?" Harry questioned his mentor.

But a sly grin and twinkling eye was the only answer he received.


	2. Hermione's New Houseguest

Mr. Whiskers - Chapter Two  
_Hermione's New Houseguest_

"...OK Mr. Potter, now back to the yellow circle, and then we'll wrap up the paperwork."

Harry didn't even bother closing his eyes before silently Apparating across the room. They were already running an hour behind after Hagrid insisted on celebrating his birthday before leaving the castle this morning, and now he was stuck in the Apparation test from hell. Well, to be completely honest, it wasn't really the administrator's fault. When they showed up at the Ministry Licensing & Regulations Annex in Diagon Alley that morning Harry had insisted on testing for Dual Apparation and an instructors license.

So now it was quickly approaching noon and Harry was beginning to worry. It had already been two days since Hermione figured out the order members around her home were spending more time watching her than setting up wards, and she had been unprotected ever since she chased them off. He was actually surprised she didn't see through their ruse sooner, seeing as they were supposedly putting up wards to prevent muggles form noticing a creature that could turn invisible anyway. As insane as Albus' plan was, the first half of the summer had passed without any problems. It was the next four weeks Harry was dreading, although it should be a nice test of what he had learned over the past year.

It really was amazing how his life had changed in that time, starting with the night he received his O.W.L scores. While his 8 owls were decent (especially compared to Ron's 5), his less than acceptable results in History of Magic and Divination along with his failure to make an 'O' in potions would require him to make an Exceeds Expectations N.E.W.T. in both Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures to become an Auror. So as he sat there trying to decide if being an Auror was worth the hassle, he realized it didn't really matter. Whatever he chose to do, Voldemort would not stop trying for him. The prophecy was right; he would be unable to live his life until Voldemort was dead. And so with visions of him and his friends going through top-secret Auror training over the summer, Harry had written a letter to Albus explaining his revelation.

Unfortunately for Harry, he forgot to take into account what other people might have planned. While Albus had agreed with Harry about his need for extra education (and even talked the ministry into waving the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery for any students on Hogwarts grounds), it looked like he would be doing this on his own.

Neville and Luna weren't really candidates for the extra work. While the outcome would affect them, the war itself was an outside event for them. And even though the extra training would have been great for Ron and Ginny, Mrs. Weasley was still a little shaken after the attack on her husband and the ministry battle that left two of her children in the medical wing, so they were forbidden from anything to do with Voldemort or the Order. As for Hermione, Ron had finally admitted he fancied her (by sending her a note from her secret admirer, and then negating the secrecy by using pig to deliver it), so they already arranged for her to spend the last month of the summer holiday at the Burrow

So by mid-July Harry was packed and heading for Hogwarts, alone once again. By the end of the summer holiday six weeks later, his extra instruction had placed him far above N.E.W.T. level in Defense and Charms, and on par with most of the seventh-years in Transfiguration. Not wanting to waste the past month of tutoring by going back to regular classes, Albus agreed to remove Harry from the normal sixth-year N.E.W.T. courses in these subjects, as long as Harry promised to continue with his private tutoring.

Ron had managed to maintain his Prefect status (even after ignoring his prefect duties the previous year) and was named Quidditch Captain since Harry's ban hadn't been overturned yet, so with no responsibilities and only 2 classes to attend each week, Harry had plenty of time to seek additional tutoring from the staff and order members around the castle and planned on spending the evenings with his friends, along with the odd night for a Defense Association meeting.

Once again, real life had other ideas. Oh sure, Ron thought the new spells were cool that first night back when Harry showed them, and Hermione was always interested in learning something new. But by the second week of school Ron was more worried about getting a gift for Hermione's birthday, and once that passed it was the upcoming Quidditch season. Hermione had continued to meet with Harry every once-in-a-while to see what he was learning, but her and Ron's first little 'tiff' just after her birthday was enough for everyone to learn the consequences of her spending time alone with 'Potter' as Ron had put it.

It was the 'Potter' comment that really made things change. If his best friends couldn't even see past his name then how could he expect anyone else to? The whole idea of O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s was kind of redundant with that kind of fame, especially if he ends up dead because he wasted time learning about rare plants of Antarctica instead of how to defend himself.

It all went back to the epiphany he had back in July, he just hadn't taken his conclusions far enough. This wasn't just a struggle between him and Tom where the winner gets to go on with their life; the stakes here were much higher than that. After Voldemort is gone and all of his friends return to their lives what is he going to do? Play Quidditch? Be an Auror? They'd probably put him behind a desk, dragging him out and stuffing him in a penguin suit each year to wave at crazed fans. Twenty years after Voldemort is dead and gone he'll still be sheltering behind wards, hiding from both dark wizards wanting to prove themselves and reporters looking for a story. Harry didn't need to prepare himself for the job-market after Hogwarts; he needed to prepare for his life.

Albus' ready acceptance of Harry's most recent revelation (along with the humorous twinkle behind his glasses) was all Harry needed to know the headmaster had already seen this coming. After all, he had already been through this himself when he defeated Grindelwald, even if he had the advantage of being over 100 at the time. So Harry finally did what he should of done when he first heard about the prophecy - he asked someone who had been in this position for advice. By the first of October, Harry's name no longer appeared on any of the Hogwarts rosters. In fact, the only place Harry was listed on any official documents was as Albus' personal assistant.

Surprisingly, the only one to really object about the change was Snape, and his main objection was Harry's age (most of the staff thought he was just jealous because Harry was to have a desk in Albus' office.) At first Ron was bitter about him abandoning the team, but once they held Quidditch tryouts and found the second year triplets to play chaser he was ok with moving Ginny back to Seeker, especially if it meant Harry would be around less to steal the spotlight. Hermione tried to give Harry a lecture about being responsible and planning for his future every time they saw each other in the common room for the first month or so, but whenever she started Ron would pop-up and distract her (no doubt protecting his claim.)

With Albus teaching him mental disciplines like Occlumency, Legilimency, Telekinesis and Telepathy, and Minerva helping him with self-transfiguration and his Animagus transformation, the months went past quickly. By Christmas he had mastered Occlumency (amazing the difference a competent teacher makes), and progressed far enough in his Animagus transformation to determine his form. The idea was to start dueling lessons with Filius over the winter vacation, but that was before Voldemort accelerated their plans by destroying Harry's protection - killing all three Dursleys during their Christmas dinner.

Worried that guilt from the attack would increase the emotional strain he was already carrying, his training staff canceled lessons for the rest of the week. But Harry was not ready to take it easy. The death of his relatives just gave him one more reason to defeat Voldemort, one more reason to be ready, one more reason to push himself to the limit. So with four days to himself he decided to test those limits.

When he woke Monday afternoon in the Hospital Wing he knew there was a lecture on the way, but it was worth it. With a virtually limitless supply of Pepper-up potion thanks to Dobby, he was able to go four days without sleeping, dedicating 24 hours a day to reading and practicing everything he could get his hands on covering self-transfiguration. By Saturday night he had transformed into the Nundu for his first time, and had it mastered by dawn Sunday. Unfortunately, he didn't remember much after that, and it wasn't until he missed his Monday morning appointment with Albus and Minerva that the staff went looking for him.

But the lecture (and 2 days of bed rest forced upon him by Madam Pomfrey) was worth shaving off 6 months of lessons and practice, especially once he learned to control a partial change. It came as quite a surprise in late March while Harry was participating in a duel against both Filius and Minerva at the same time. Seeing two stunners coming toward him and no time to dodge, he had surrendered to the idea of being beaten once again and thought of how the anti-magic properties of his Nundu form would really make a difference. The looks on his two instructors faces were quite amusing when they saw the spells absorbed into his now furry form. Somehow he had accidentally made a partial shift, looking much like what muggles thought Werewolves looked like. It took months of practice for him to control the shift enough for a dense pelt capable of absorbing spells, but without going too far as to loose the ability to hold his wand.

Now if he could just get control of the natural disillusionment abilities in his human form…

"Mr. Potter!" The tone of exasperation in his voice made it clear it wasn't the first time the test administrator had tried to get his attention.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Can you repeat that?"

"Just sign here and we are through. Your instructors certification will arrive by owl later this week."

As he signed the license a thought struck him - he couldn't have an owl delivering anything to him at Hermione's. The whole reason for this scheme was her fierce independence. She couldn't stand Ron's jealousy so she wasn't at the burrow, and she's chased off the order members that were acting as guards. If she thought for one minute that this favor for Albus (he still had trouble calling the staff by their first names) was not legitimate, he would be out and she'd be left unguarded for another month. And after they intercepted an owl from Malfoy Jr. to his mother detailing everything about Hermione's muggle family, it was a reasonable conclusion that she would be attacked before the end of summer.

"Um, can you have that forwarded to Hogwarts? Albus will see that I get it."

"Of course Mr. Potter. Here is your Apparation license, good for up to two additional passengers. And may I wish you a very happy 17th sir."

Harry thanked him as he and Hagrid left the office. Heading toward the Apparation point, Hagrid began to get a little nervous.

"Right, that should be all yeh need here. Now, yeh sure we cant jus' be takin' the knight bus over to Hermione's?"

"Hagrid, you just watched me apparate around the testing center for 30 minutes carrying all sorts of things. I can get us both over to her house no problem. Besides, it's already lunchtime and Albus told her we would be there this morning."

"Eh, I suppose yer right. But an't the muggles gona wond'r 'bout me, I don't really fit in 'round there yeh know, kinda big for me size." 'Specialy if'n yer gona be there looking like a leopard"

"No worries Hagrid. Nobody will see me, and I've got my invisibility cloak for you to wear."

So after a quick pop into the Forbidden Forest for Harry to shift form ("Don't need no wizards gettn' scared ifn they see you like that, eh Harry?") Hermione found herself answering the doorbell, to an empty porch.

"Hello… Oh!" She started when the immense form of Hagrid shed the invisibility cloak. "Sorry Hagrid, you startled me."

"S'ok Hermione, 'jus didn't want any O' yer neighbors ta see us."

Hermione froze next to the now-open door. "Us… you mean… it's here?"

"Oh, e's here someware. Now wher'd yeh go off ta"

And with that a large leopard shimmered into being in the entryway.

"Ah, there he is, and I'll just leave his stuff here. Now if yeh don't mind, I'm gona slip off fer a pick-me-up at the Three Broomsticks 'fore heading back to the castle."

Hermione paused mid-stride and turned to her half-giant friend. "The Castle? I thought you were leaving for the summer. That is why it is being dropped off here, right?"

"Eh, of course Hermione." Harry lay down on the cool tiles of the entryway, hiding his face behind his huge paws. You would think after 6 years of accidentally spilling secrets to her Hagrid would learn have learned to just keep his mouth shut when around Hermione. "I jus afta go get me stuff. Albus' got a portkey all ready fer me"

"Albus?"

Harry didn't need his telepathic skills to sense the skepticism in her voice.

"I said that? Mus be spending too much time wi' Harry. Whole staff's got em callen em by their names, 'cept Snape that is. Well, I'm off"

And with that Hagrid practically ran out to the street to summon the Knight Bus back to Hogsmeade (actually, he was running, trying to get out of there before he let anything else slip in front of Hermione).

Closing her front door, Hermione turned to her new guest.

"So, I guess you can't tell me what's going on? Thought not. Well, if I understand the notes Professor Dumbledore gave me, you should be able to understand much of what I am saying. Is that right?"

The large cat gave a slight nod. He had been wondering what happened to his notes.

"Ok, so I've got a deadly magical creature that the ministry has been lying about for 80 years, that has been spending the past 4-5 months with my headmaster and, if I recognize the writing on the scroll he gave me, someone who was my best friend, that the order spent 3 weeks putting up wards to prevent people from seeing you, even though you can turn invisible… Am I missing anything yet?"

The confused look on the Nundu's face almost made Hermione burst out laughing.

"Oh my goodness. Well, that's the first thing we'll have to change. Harry kept referring to you as 'Shadow', but it really doesn't fit your personality, now does it?"

She slowly stood, still looking at the large cat with the perplexed expression on his face.

"Well, all the notes say you are a male, so let's go with 'Mr. Whiskers'"

The look of shock and alarm on Mr. Whiskers face really made her burst into laughter this time.

"So be it, Mr. Whiskers." She started, once again trying to keep the laughter out of her voice. "And I'm willing to bet they forgot to feed you before dropping you off on my doorstep. Well, let's see what else Hagrid left here."

Going over to the pile of stuff Hagrid dropped by the door, she continued her narrative to the newly dubbed Mr. Whiskers.

"Let's see… We've got a couple of large pillows, probably for your bed. And a nice brush to keep the shedding down… Ah, here we go. 'Ms. Granger - your new friend will take care of his own meals'...and just how are you supposed to do that?" Hermione paused to give Mr. Whiskers a hard look. "No eating the neighbors pets, ok? '…but here are some treats to keep him on his best behavior. Enjoy your holiday, Headmaster Dumbledore' Well, let's see what kind of treat he sent you."

Looking into the bag Hermione started giggling. "What else, it's a bag full of Lemon Drops!"

With that, Mr. Whiskers buried his head in his paws in shame.

"Are you embarrassed about your sweet tooth Mr. Whiskers? Now that is exactly why 'Shadow' just didn't fit you."

Putting down the treats, Hermione picked up the last item in the stack with a look of confusion on her face. Worried about what else Albus might have sent, Mr. Whiskers took a peak, quickly recognizing what she held in her hands.

"J.P…." She mumbled, running her fingers over the embroidery inside the cloaks collar. "What in the world was Hagrid doing with Harry's invisibility cloak?"


	3. The Beauty of Cotton

Mr. Whiskers - Chapter Three  
_The Beauty of Cotton..._

It was a nightmare. It had to be. There is no way in heaven or hell this could be happening in real life. With all the events of his life so far, not to mention the ever present prophesy still hanging over his head, it would take a seriously demented mind to come up with more ways to torture him.

But, we are talking about the great Boy-Who-Lived here. Some times it seems the Powers That Be were seriously stoned when they planned out his life.

Forget that there was no Voldemort, no Death Eaters, and no pain. No night of death-filled visions from Tom ever induced the kind of horror he was going through right now.

She was brushing his hair.

OK, so maybe the brushing itself wasn't that bad. His coat had become rather scruffy after hanging out with Hangrid and Fang for the last six weeks. And summer had just started so he was shedding a little. Besides, Tonks had brushed out his coat plenty of times to help massage his sore muscles he first mastered his transformation. He actually kinda missed the rubdowns she would give him after some of his more strenuous workouts, but she was seven years older than him and it wasn't like they were going to start seeing each other or anything (although Remus didn't seem mind the fifteen year gap between the two of them...)

After Hangrid left Hermione brought some of Mr. Whiskers stuff up to her room, including that bloody brush Albus had sent along. Harry was confused at first when she sat on the floor, leaned against her bed, and waved him over. But when she grabbed him by the scruff and hauled him into her lap he was petrified. Eyes closed, he wondered how she was going to get even with him. They had not parted on good terms and Harry was convinced she had figured out it was him. The first swipe of the brush through his glossy pelt surprised him so much that he had almost reverted to his human form, but he was completely taken back when he opened his eyes to find she had drawn his upper torso into her lap with his head currently pillowed on her thighs. Then she started to talk.

And it wasn't stuff she would normally share with him or Ron.

Or, it might be now. Harry knew she started to open up after becoming friends with Ginny over their summer in Grimmauld Place. And she did spend several evenings each week with the other 'Gryffindor Girls' while their boyfriends were having Quidditch practice (he still wondered how Jack Sloper ended up with Lavender Brown, though). Evidently makeup tips weren't the only things she had been picking up.

It wasn't exactly gossip, she was just describing the people that might drop by or talk about while he was there. But some of the details she provided were far more 'colorful' than what he was used to coming from her. Or, at least what used to come from her. It had been several months since he had taken the time to sit down and talk with her. The distance that had grown between Harry and his friends was even more pronounced when he realized she had described most of the Weasleys (with less than flattering comments about her ex-boyfriend), all of the Order members, and even the girls from her dorm, without mentioning him.

At that point, Harry knew this was real. No mater how inadequate he might feel when it comes to the prophecy, however much he may torture himself over endangering his friends, he would never of dreamed that the one person who has always treated him like a normal person would forget about him. There wasn't a bitter comment like she had for Ron, or even the 'off chance they visit' description of her dorm mates, evidently the possibility of seeing him didn't even cross her mind.

Harry's attention drifted as Hermione began to talk about her parents. He had figured she might be upset with him after the argument they got into during the spring break, but he never thought she would have simply dismissed him. He had thought she went home for the Easter holidays like Ron and Ginny, but evidently her parents were celebrating their anniversary with a Mediterranean cruse so she stayed behind. He was already running late for training with Flitwick and Tonks that morning, so while he was surprised to see her, he only had time to give her a quick wave before running out the common room door.

That evening would have probably gone a lot better if Harry had not just spent six hours trying to hold his Animagus form while his teachers cursed him with everything short of the unforgivables to test his magical resistance. His pelt had absorbed so much magic that his skin was still tingling from it and he was getting little static shocks every time he touched anything magical. Blindly stumbling through the portrait hole, he was heading toward the boys dormitories when Hermione grabbed his arm. Looking back the next day, both Albus and him agreed she probably just wanted to speak with him, but at the moment all Harry knew was that a magical surge had thrown him clear across the common room. Tired, hurting, and already feeling slighted about how Ron and her had been avoiding him for months, the following conversation did not go well.

The rest of the students returned by the time Harry cooled off, and when he tried to approach her the following weekend to apologize Ron took a swing at him. Being that Ron had taken after his brother Charlie and was now a good 6 ½ ft with plenty of muscle from Quidditch, that wasn't really something to sneeze at. But training to fight 10-15 hours a day combined with his own natural seeker skills, Harry had little trouble staying out of Ron's reach. It probably would have ended with Ron just wearing himself out if he had kept his mouth shut, but after ten minutes of him ranting about Harry's fame, wealth, and ego Harry had enough. When Ron took that next swing, Harry didn't bother ducking, allowing the energy he had absorbed during that afternoon's training to come to the surface.

Fortunately this was a controlled release, so unlike the forced feedback Hermione had caused, Harry was in control this time and didn't move an inch. Unfortunately while Harry had been blasted into one of the many chairs scattered around the room when Hermione touched him, Ron met with the tower wall.

Hard.

In the end, Ron ended up in the care of Madam Pomfrey for the rest of the weekend, Hermione was hiding in the girls doom (evidently she wasn't too happy about Ron referring to her as 'His' during the argument) and Harry moved his belongings into the Room of Requirement, much to the dismay of several couples that had been using it for after-hours activities. And, he didn't get a chance to apologize to Hermione for their fight the previous day.

Now, three months later, he is disguised as a large cat, with his head lying in her lap, purring like Crookshanks in a sunbeam while she shares stuff she would never normally tell him about.

She is going to hate him when she finds out.

Hermione quickly slipped out from beneath him as he pondered the situation he was in. The sound of her voice quickly got his attention as she entered the in-suite bath.

"Well," the laughter was evident in her voice, "we may have gotten you nicely groomed but now it looks like I'm the one shedding"

Curious as to what has her so amused, Harry got up and trotted over to the open door just in time to see Hermione dropping the peach top and tan skirt that she had been wearing, now covered in his hair, into the clothes hamper.

_OhMyGod OhMyGod OhMyGod, _Harry was in a full-blown panic now. _Forget hating me, she is gona kill me when she finds out._

Noticing Mr. Whiskers at the door, Hermione turned to face him. "Didn't anyone teach you not to spy on a lady while she was changing?" She asked with a smile on her face. It felt good to smile again. She knew her less-than-chipper attitude had been getting on her mother's nerves for the past month and was amazed at how much better she was feeling after just a few hours with her new friend. No wonder they suggest elderly people get themselves a pet.

Harry never saw that smile though. Being that he was on all fours in his Nundu form his field of view was much lower than her head. He had been quite entranced by the play of muscles in her thigh as she stood there on her tiptoes. When she turned to speak, his attention was traveling up toward her face before noticing that while she may have stopped moving, some parts hadn't. He was just wondering why clothing manufacturers bother with bright colors and fancy fabrics if simple white cotton could be so entrancing when her voice broke through his daze... '_Didn't anyone teach you not to spy...'_ Mortified at the realization he was ogling Hermione while she was wearing almost nothing, Harry quickly closed his eyes and tried to back out of the room.

Having forgotten her new friend would understand her, Hermione was surprised when the large cat ducked his head in shame and closed his eyes, quickly turning to amusement as he tried to back out without looking and ran into the wall.

And then slipped on the linoleum.

And knocked over the trashcan.

The urge to start laughing came to an abrupt end when the panicking predator clipped the wall trying to get leave the room, splintering the doorsill and leaving a blood-covered tuft of fur hanging from the frame. Worried about his safety Hermione quickly followed him back into the bedroom, just in time to watch the large cat collide with the side of her bed hard enough to knock it into the wall.

Jumping to the side of her fallen companion, she quickly wrapped her arms around his neck in a soft embrace, hoping to calm him down before he was injured further.

"Oh, I'm sorry Mr. Whiskers. I was just teasing," Hermione softly petting the back of his head, still holding him closely. "Shhhh, I wasn't really mad." She continued to stroke his soft fur and murmur quietly until she felt him relax.

Harry came out of his panic slowly, comforted by the warmth of his best friend's embrace and the soothing sound of her voice rumbling deep in her chest. But as peaceful as it was he couldn't let himself accept her comfort for too long, especially when she didn't know it was him. Slowly climbing back to his feet, he gave Hermione a gentle nudge, trying to thank her for her concern.

"Feeling better then?" She asked, reaching out to run her fingers through his soft coat.

Harry responded with a throaty rumble, rubbing his face against her cheeks to reassure the worried girl.

"OK then," she smiled, trying to brush the black hairs off herself as she stood and walked toward the bathroom once again. "I better get cleaned up before my parents get home. They've been anxious to see you for some reason."

Harry moved closer to the open door to hear her better as she was rummaging through the bathroom, but was careful not to look in.

"I'm not sure what Professor Dumbledore told them to get their approval for you to stay here, but mum has been very excided about it. I've never known her to really be an animal person, but she's already been talking about taking an afternoon off to get to know you. She's the one that suggested Crookshanks leave for a while to avoid any territorial disputes."

Hermione's voice was further muffled as he heard her opening the various cupboards. Concentrating on what she was saying, Harry moved right up next to the doorway, being sure to keep his view away from the open door.

"Dad has been a bit weird about it. He's the one that usually takes in every stray he comes across, but he's been kind of reserved about this. You will have to be on your best behavior to win him over."

As the shower started Harry began to suspect that Albus had told her parents that it would be him in disguise. But why would her parents agree to have a disguised wizard in the house? Wouldn't it be easier to use the Fidelius Charm to protect the entire family? And he really didn't think any parents would be willing to use their own child as bait. As soon as Albus told them about the Death Eaters collecting information on their family they should have gone into hiding. Obviously there was something going on that Albus did not inform Harry of.

Harry's pondering was cut short when the white cotton garment he was admiring a short time ago fluttered through the open doorway, slipping across his muzzle and being hooked by one strap over his left ear.

_So much for Hermione killing me when she finds out, there will be nothing left after her Father is done._


End file.
